How much of a scam is Street Cleaning?

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2O6rdy7XuoA[/youtube]

Matt Schrader spent a few months talking to people about the street cleaning policy in LA – both the people who are in charge of it and the people effected by it. Turns out you are much more likely to get a ticket then you are to actually have your street swept.

If you get a ticket for parking in a no-parking-because-of-street-sweeping zone, and they don’t ever bother to sweet the street, should that ticket be void?

I’m with Lucinda. If the streets are marked with signs stating that there’s no parking during a specified period, I’m okay with cars being ticketed. On the other hand, how much is the budget for street sweeping services? How much tax money is that department getting for the service that they’re not providing? We’re being robbed. The tickets are a delightful bonus robbery.

In my neighborhood (Sunset Junction) the streets don’t get cleaned because cars are parked on street during the street cleaning times. Our cleaning days are Wednesday and Friday from noon to 2:00PM, prime time for hipsters out to drink over priced coffee.

The parking enforcement folks tell me the City makes thousands of dollars each week from parking tickets in teh SUnset Junction community.

A few years ago, the business tried to get the cleaning days/time changed. The city would not even consider it.

Maybe if people would stop to read the posted rules, our streets would get cleaned and the drivers would not get tickets.

I’ve always felt that the zeal with which parking enforcement gives tickets is unwarranted and a blight of LA living. I’m all for ticketing scofflaws who ignore law when it’s for the greater good. However, it really seems that we have far more parking control officers giving tickets…usually just moments after a meter expires, than is necessary. And the rates for a regular parking ticket? $50, then if not paid in 21 days or so, it jumps to $100. That is just outrageous. Really. The city council needs to address this. And get on the street sweeping problem. Thanks for the post. Parking issues like this are one of my pet peeves.

I may sound dumb…but I was really shocked when I stayed home from work one day and realized that our street didn’t get cleaned on cleaning day. I was going to complain but now I realize this is pretty common.

And I have seen street cleaners here in LA just bypass parked cars, so there’s no reason why they aren’t coming by.

I wasn’t surprised to see the zeal with which tickets were/are handed out. I remember living in Valley Village and it was a horrendous parking situation made worse on street cleaning day. You could always count on the ticket if not moved and the sweeper to just drive around the parked car.

I think bringing it up to city council in budget crisis times is likely to see an increase in the fine more than a more common sense approach to the problem(s) outlined.

It’s a dirty secret that parking tix are cash cows for the city – No one in City Hall CARES if the streets are actually CLEAN. Have you noticed the total lack of wastepaper baskets in L.A.? NOWHERE to put any litter – Only at bus stops & they are overflowing! The school across the street said that they had to get a GRANT for a trash bin ?? Not when there are several hardware stores within walking distance. I wish the city was as diligent about checking on all the VENDORS we have around the school – I doubt any of them are legal! (And they create litter by having the kids throw the wrappers on the ground – teaching them great habits, yes?) And does our local fastfood place not have any responsibility for all litter its foods create. L.A. would be a much lovelier city without all the LITTER which makes it dirty. What happened to little men with brooms & little pushcart pails? It would give work to the unemployed & all the guys hanging around our local Home depot…